South Korea approves 2026 plan to accelerate national strategic technologies
South Korea’s government has approved its first detailed implementation plan for the 2026 National Strategic Technology Development Basic Plan, signaling a comprehensive push to turn selected technologies into market-ready assets. The decision was made at the 13th meeting of the National Strategic Technology Special Committee. The plan lays out cross-ministry annual tasks aimed at strengthening the nation’s technology sovereignty and accelerating future innovations.
A central feature is focus on NEXT strategic technologies—areas deemed crucial for future growth and national security. The plan intends to ensure that investments in technology, funding, and policy support are tightly linked so that designated strategic technologies move quickly from research to commercial use. Officials say this requires stronger "technology-investment-policy" coordination across ministries.
Korea’s plan designates four overarching legal frameworks to guide these efforts: the National Strategic Technology Development Act, the Tax Incentives Act, the National Advanced Strategic Industry Act, and the Industrial Technology Protection Act. Together, they help identify and streamline 513 technologies across 19 common technology areas for prioritized collaboration, both domestically and with international partners.
R&D spending under the 2026 plan is set at 8.6 trillion won, a 30% increase from the previous year. In addition, policy financing is projected at 46.6 trillion won to support strategic technology development. Earlier this year, the government also launched the first Science and Technology Innovation Fund, aimed at five national strategic technology areas, with a size of about 763.2 billion won.
The plan also emphasizes connecting research outcomes with market entry. It includes expanding support for startup creation, linking R&D results to public procurement, and offering incentives such as R&D project points and tailored financial consulting to leading tech startups. The government aims to accelerate the transfer of discoveries from the lab to the economy.
Regional efforts will rely on technology innovation hubs and specialized research centers. Jeju will focus on green hydrogen, while Jeollabuk-do (Jeonbuk) targets advanced batteries, among other areas. These hubs will be used to disseminate strategic-technology成果 (outcomes) into local economies and national supply chains.
A second major theme is “forward-looking technology security” to match an accelerating global tech race. The plan calls for reforming the technology-management system, clarifying leadership in AI transformation and trade-security, and shaping NEXT-era innovation foundations. It also includes whether to remove the traditional preassessment process for R&D (예타) to speed up government-funded research and development.
Korea says it will participate actively in multilateral discussions on AI, semiconductors, and quantum technologies to help set global norms and standards and to strengthen cooperation with international partners. Adjustments to security classifications under revised National R&D Innovation laws are also being considered to tighten protection of strategic technologies.
The third theme centers on a mission-driven policy framework called the NEXT Projects, designed to align technology, policy, and investment through a coordinated public-private “one-team” approach. The government plans to phase out the PBS project-management system gradually in favor of a system centered on delivering tangible outcomes.
Park In-kyu, head of the Science and Technology Innovation Office at the Ministry of Science and ICT, said that rising geopolitical frictions make strategic technologies essential to national economy and security. He stressed that cross-ministry collaboration will be strengthened to secure and accelerate the development of national strategic technologies, aiming to build a global technology-innovation ecosystem capable of competing on the world stage.